“Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List” Movie Review

How many movies have you seen where a main character is gay? How about bisexual? Surprisingly, most people don’t even know what bisexuality entails. It isn’t only the fault of the miseducation of the subject, but it is also the fault of media excluding diverse sexualities from the entertainment field. So, when Netflix starts recommending a film which includes exactly this, how could an LGBT+ supporter not indulge?

The story, Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List, tells of a girl who falls madly in love with her openly gay best friend, who in turn, falls in love with her boyfriend. It’s a love triangle that we don’t usually get to see. Naomi (Victoria Justice) is trapped between giving up her boyfriend Bruce II (Ryan Ward) and finally fully coming to terms with her best friend, Ely (Pierson Fodé), being gay.

I personally thought the plot was beautifully written and the acting was well done. The tension we see when conflicts arise and the love shown once they are resolved made me see the true connection between the characters. The dialogue is filled with witty, hilarious bits that had me rolling on the floor laughing my socks off. However, this film also displayed a plotline which included LGBT+ subjects and truthful outlooks on the real life after high school.

Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List is a movie that defiantly broke down some barriers that the media had put up. We get to see a gay man with lesbian parents, a bisexual Canadian film geek, and a girl with divorced parents who learns to get off her feet and take care of her mother. An element most movies tend to avoid is characters with the same names, this was added twice in this film: Bruce I and Bruce II, and girl-Robin and boy-Robin (who also happened to be a couple). I found this amazing how daring and out-there these film makers were willing to go to make the film unique.

In conclusion, I give this spectacularly crazy movie a 9.5/10 rating, as I do feel like they could have pushed the limits a little farther; I was hoping for some more context on Naomi’s mom and dad, and more Bruce I moments. However, for a movie that went so far beyond today’s level of social acceptance, I was amazed at how much I enjoyed it. Maybe that’s because my personal preference in movies seems to be more extravagant and unique. This contemporary LGBT+ movie is definitely going on my top 5 favourite movie list.